My father used to tell me, “Son, learn to use your own head, because if you let someone else use it, they will use it to their advantage, and not yours.” In the Bible I read, “He that hath no rule over his own spirit, is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.” (Proverbs 25:28) With so much information available to us, often with an agenda to get our money, our mind, or our endorsement, it is difficult to know if we are using our own heads or if we have bought into the propaganda. Whenever we respond to an ad simply based on our feelings, or accept information without question or evaluation, we have probably been used. When someone is trying to control you, the first thing they try to determine is, who or what is controlling you now. Advertisers generally want to know which product or company you are using, so that they can point out the flaws of that company or product and convince you that their product is better.
Some people will tell you that it is just easier to let someone else decide things for them because they don’t want to think that hard. In simple things in life that is probably a good thing, but when others have control over our lives in matters of conscience, ethics, morality, spirituality, and integrity we become like a city with no boundaries or protection. Ultimately, this person will not only feel used, but they will also realize that they have used someone else. As we become accountable for ourselves, we do not need others to be responsible for us.
Being disciplined for success means taking responsibility for our lives so that we are not using or being used by others.